Running board for railroad cars



Jan. 30, 1940.

e. A. STEUBER RUNNING BOARD FOR RAILROAD CARS Filed Feb. 15, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 GeorgeA. zeuer.

1940- G. A. STEUBER 88,729

RUNNING BOARD FOR RAILROAD CARS Filed Feb. 13, 1939 2 Sheets-Shet 2 George A .Sieqber.

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Patented Jan. 30,1940 v time OFFiiCE RUNNING BOARD FOR RAILROAD cans George A. Steuber, Penfield, N. Y., assignor to Despatch Shops, llnc., a

York

corporation of: .New 1 Application February 13, 1939, Serial 'No. 256,138

3 Claims.

Running boards now commonly in use on railroad cars are of the same width from end to end,

and normally the running board of one car is ject beyond the ends of a car, and provide these projecting ends with materially wide lateral foot supporting wings, thus making such ends materialy. wider than the main body of the running board.

Another object of my invention is to provide a running board having ends materially wider than the main bodytof the board to provide a platform upon which a trainman may stand while operating ice hatch doors on refrigerator cars, thereby eliminating the building of the customary foot board framing around the ice hatch of such cars; and with these and other objects in view, my invention consists of the parts and combination of parts hereinafter described.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a detail perspective view of the top end portion of a refrigerator car embodying my invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan View of a car with my improved running board attached.

Figure 3 is a top plan viewv of another embodiment of my improved running board. 1

Figure 4 is a detail side elevation. r In one form of my improved running board for railroad cars it is made lattice or gridlike, and

consists of the side pieces I extending the entire length of the board and lengthwise extending load supporting strips, or members, 2, said side pieces and strips 2 being interlocked with each other by means of the transverse bars. This interlocking may be accomplished by welding, or any other approved manner. This metal grid may be made, such, for example, from expanded' metal, fire open mesh fabric, et cetera, according tothe wish of the manufacturer and customer. These boardsare of such length that the ends project a material distance beyond the ends of the car.

According to my invention these running boards are provided at their projecting ends with to provide a running board of sufiicient length to pro- I running board.

side laterally extending wings 3, which are sup ported and secured to the ends of the wing boards by means of the supporting bars 4 and 5, which,

in turn, are secured to the running board by rivets, or in any other approved way.

In another embodiment of my invention the running board is made up of wooden boards 6 suitably connected together, the ends of which 3 board also project a material distance beyond the ends of the car, as described in connection with the first namedembodiment, and the board is provided with side laterally extending wings I, thus making these projecting ends materially wider than the width of the main body of the These wings I are secured to the running board by means of supporting bars 8, and the entire projecting end structure of the running board is further supported by means of the brackets 9, one end of which is secured to the car while the other end is secured to the projecting end structure of the running board.

The boards 5 are supported at intervals by the transverse bars 9.

The character of the material forming the running board is'optional.

' The materially widened projecting ends of the running board give a wider and safer footing between cars'for the trainmen under aservic'e condition, in addition to which these wider ends provide a convenient and safe footing for trainmen in operating the ice hatches on refrigerator "cars.

As will be seen'from the drawings, the wings at the ends of the-running boards extend rearwardly a considerable distance back over the and its roof, of a main runway platform extend ing centrally and longitudinally of the roof from end to end of'the car, and laterally extending platform wings at opposite sides of each end of the main runway platform, the outer ends of the wings and end of the, main platform at each end of the car extending outwardly to like degrees beyond the car end and the inner ends of the wings being of greater width than the said outer 'ends thereof and arranged to overlie the roof of the car 2. In a safety running board construction for railway cars, the combination with a car body and its roof, of a main runway, platform extending centrally and longitudinally of the roof from end to end of the car, and laterally extending platform wings at opposite sides of each end of the main runway platform, the outer ends of the wings and end of the main platform at each end of the car extending outwardly to like degrees beyond the car end and the inner ends of the wings extending inwardly over the roof of the car, said wings being of minimum width at their outer ends and maximum width at their inner ends and gradually varying in width between said ends.

3. The combination with a car body and its roof, said roof having hatch openings and doors therefor located adjacent each end of the car v hatch doors.

wings at opposite sides of each end of the main platform; the outer ends of the wings and end of the main platform at each end of the car projecting outwardly beyond the car end and the inner ends of the wings extending inwardly beyond the car end over the roof toward the ad jacent hatch openings and providing supports on which a trainman may stand to operate the l GEORGE A. STEUBER. 

